Cover installation for storage bins



May 10, 1932. D. E. STAIR COVER INSTALLATION FOR STORAGE BINS Filed Oct 12, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet ATTORNEYS May 10, 1932. D. E. s'rAlR COVER INSTALLATION FOR STORAGE BINS 2. Sheets-Sheet R. 5 m. Q lrw O IIIIIIIIlI NM I W MW W m i\ L. M W WW B Patented May 10, 1932 UNE'T'ED STATES PATEN o FIc DANIEL E. STAIR, OF HUD-SON, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO GIFFOR-D- WOOD COMPANY, OF

HUDSON, NEW YORK, A. CORPORATION OF NEW YORK COVER INSTALLATION FOR STORAGE BINS Application filed October 12, 1928. Serial No. 312,099.

This invention relates to covers for storage bins and thelike, and among other objects, aims to provide an improved hatchway cover installation and novel means whereby the covers may be selectively and automatically opened by a trolley car to permit gravity dumping of material into the bins from the car.

In the drawings Fig. 1 is a plan view showing an illustrative installation of covers applied to a series of storage bins, one of the covers being shown in open position;

Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal section through the same, and also showing in elevation the lower part of a trolley car;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary sectional view of one of the bins drawn on an enlarged scale and showing the front portion of the car in 1 section;

Fig. 4 is an elevation of the lower right end portion of the car of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view taken on the line 55 of Fig. 3, the car being. omitted.

Referringparticularly t0 the drawings, there are shown a series of covered storage bins 9 on top of which are mounted a pair.

of rails 10 forming a trackway similar to that shown and described in my application Ser.

No. 312,100 filed October 12, 1928, now Patent No. 1,796,168,'dated March 10, 1931. A trolley 11 carrying a hoist dump bucket (not shown) is adapted to travel on the trackway f and is operated so as to stop over one of the bins while the bucket is lowered therein for dumping. The rails 10 are herein shown as being supported on spaced beams 12 extend- 7 ing longitudinally of the series of bins.

the outer sides of the beams and extend from I the. beams 12 to a point beyond the rims of the bins. Additionalinclined roof portions 15 are located between the beams and extend from thebeams 13 to a point between adjacent bins, where suitable openings and spouting (not shown) may be provided to permit water to drain.

Each hatchway is adapted to be .closed by a movable cover or hatch 16, the illustrative installation being generally similar to that shown in my aforesaid co-pending application. That is to say, the covers are supported on rollers 17, carried by axles 18 connected to the undersides of the covers by suitable brackets 19 and are guided to roll on inclined trackways 20 secured to the beams 12, the arrangement being such that the covers will close automatically by gravity. Each of the covers preferably'has a depending flange 21 secured to the upper end to prevent water, etc. from entering that end of the hatchway when the cover is closed, while the other end of the cover overlies the roof andprotects the other end of the hatchway.

I In accordance with the present invention, means are provided to enable each cover to be opened .by the trolley car. 'A. bracket 22 having upstanding legs 23 and 2 1 is secured to the top of each cover and is adapted to coact with a movable abutment in theform of a cross bar 25 on a pusher plate 26 carried by the front end of the trolley (Figs. 2 and 3). The legs 23 and 24 otbraoket 22 are of different heights so that, when the cover is in closed position (Fig. 3), the top of the leg 23, nearest the lower end of the cover,

is slightly below the horizontal plane of the cross bar 25, while the top of the leg 24 extends above said plane. Thus,'when the trlolley approaches the bracket, the cross-bar 25 will pass-over the top of the shorter leg 23 and engagethe leg 24 to open the cover by pushing it up the track 20. When the trolley is moved in the opp'os'ite'direct'ion,

the cross-bar 25 engages the leg 28 and pulls the cover with it, if it does not roll freely, until the bar passes over the top of the leg 23; then the cover closes the rest of the way by gravity and its momentum.

In order that the trolley may be stopped automatically when a cover has been fully opened, so as to permit lowering of the bucket into the open bin, a stop switch 27, connected in the trolley motor circuit, is secured to the pusher plate. A depending plunger 28, for operating the stop switch, is spaced above the top of the leg 24 when the cover is closed (Fig. 3),,but' as the cover is opened, the top of the leg 24 approaches and engages the plunger, due to the inclination of the tracks 20, until when the cover is fully opened (Fig.

2) the plunger will have moved upwardly far enough to operate the switch 27 to break the. trolley circuit.

lvhile the above described mechanism would suflice for one cover, it would not be satisfactory where more than one cover is used, because in each traverse of the trolley all the covers would be opened, one'a'fter the other. Hence, means are provided whereby any one of a number of covers may be selectively opened.

Referring to Fig. 1, the brackets 22 are shown as being spaced at difierent distances from the sides of the covers, so that no two of the brackets will be in the same vertical longitudinal plane, and the pusher plate 26 is mounted to be moved horizontally across the front of the trolley car so as to be en gageable with any selected cover. Any means may be employed to mount and move the plate 26, one form being shown in Figs. 2,3 and 4. The plate 26 is shown as having a transverse guideway by means of which it 'is slidably mounted on a horizontally disposed beam 29, secured to the front end of the trolley. A hand lever 30 is rigidly secured to and extends upwardly from the plate so that the .plate may be moved manually. Any suitable means may be employed to lock the plate in its selected position. In the'present example there is shown a spring pressed plunger 31 connected to a hand grip 32 and adapted to be engaged in any one of a plurality of notches 33 in beam 29. Of course, the notches are so arranged that when the plunger is engaged with any one of them,

Q the plate will be in position to engage a corresponding one of the brackets 22. v

It will be apparentthat with the above described installation, the bins will be closed except at such times when they are to be filled, thus keeping, snow and rain from getting into thebins. Moreover, the improved cover installation and operating mechanism enables a trolley car attendant to pre-set the cover engagingmeans so that the car will stop at the selected bin after opening the cover.

Further, the improved mechanism can easily be installed on existing batteries of bins.

Obviously, the present invention is not restricted to the particular embodiment thereof herein shown and described. Moreover, it is not indispensable that all the features of the invention be used conjointly, since they may be employed advantageously in various combinations and sub-combinations.

What is claimed is:

1. In combination with a storage bin having a hatchway and a movable cover thereon; a material conveyor mounted to travel over the hatchway; means on the cover engageable by the conveyor whereby the cover is opened by the conveyor; and means on the conveyor automatically operable by contact with the cover, where it is opened, to stop the conveyor when in position over the opening exposed by the moved cover,

2. In combination with a bin having a movable hatchway cover, a trolley mounted to travel over the bin to dump material into the hatchway; means on the cover engageable by the trolley car whereby the cover is opened automatically; and an electric switch on the trolley car arranged to be actuated during the opening movement of the cover to stop the trolley car in load-dumping position.

3. In combination with a series of storage bins having movable hatchway covers, a material conveying car guided to travel over the bins; and co-engaging means on the top of the covers and on the lower part of the car whereby the car engages and opens any cover; the means on the car being adjustable in position by the operator, thereby determining which cover will be opened.

4. In combination with a series of storage bins having movable hatchway covers, an electrically driven, material conveying car guided to travel over the bins; cooperating means on the covers and on the car whereby the car opens any selected cover; a switch on the car; and means on each cover whereby a cover when in open position will automatically stop the car over the open hatchway by opening said switch.

5. In combination with a series of storage bins having movable hatchway covers, a material conveyor guided to travel over the bins to dump material into the hatchways; a series of brackets on the covers arranged out of alinement with respect to each other but adjacent the path of the conveyor; and an adjustable abutment 011 the conveyor adapted to be pre-set to engage and open any selected one of said covers.

6. In combination with a series of storage bins having movable hatohway covers, a ma terial conveyor guided to travel over the bins to dump material into the hatchways; a se ries of brackets on the covers arranged out of alinement with respect to the path of the conveyor; an adjustable abutment on the conveyor adapted to be preset to engage and open any selected one of said covers; and means on the conveyor adapted to be operated by a cover when moved to its open position to stop the conveyor over the open hatchway.

7 In combination with a series of storage bins each having a movable hatchway cover, a trolley car mounted to travelover all of the bins; upstanding brackets attached to the covers arranged'out of alinement with each other but adjacent the path of the trolley car; an adjustable abutmentcarried on the trolley car to engage the bracket on any one of said covers; and means whereby the abutment may be pre-set for selective engagement with a particular bracket thereby to open the cover to which said bracket is attached.

8. In combination with a seriesof storage bins each having a movable hatchway cover mounted to open by moving up an inclined plane and to close by gravity; a materialconveying trolley car adapted to travel over said bins to dump material into the hatchways, the path of movement of the car being'in the direction of the opening and closing movement of the covers; upstanding brackets on the covers arranged out of alinement with respect to each other but adjacent the path of the conveyor; a movable abutment on the car adapted to be pre-set to engage any selected one of said brackets and open a cover; and an electric switch associated with said movable abutment and arranged to be actuated by the cover when it is being moved to open position to break the trolley car circuit and to bring the car to a stop in unloading position over the open hatchway.

9. In combination with a series of storage bins each having a movable cover over a hatchway, a trolley car guided to travel over the bins; and relatively adjustable means on the covers and on the trolley car adapted to be pre-set so that the trolley car will automatically open any selected one of said covers, but no other.

10. In combination with a series of storage bins having movable hatchway covers each mounted to roll up an inclined plane to open; a trolley car guided to move over the covers and their hatchways in the line of movement of the covers; brackets on said covers arranged out of alinement with respect to each other but adjacent the path of the car; abutment means on the car adapted to bepre-set to engage any selected one of said brackets; an electric switch associated with the abutment means and arranged to be actuated by so the selected bracket when its cover is rolled e5 11. In combination with a series of storage bins, each having' a hatchway cover mounted to roll up an inclined trackway to open position; a trolley car guided to travel over the bins in the path of the'opening movement of said covers an upstanding forked bracket on each cover, one arm being longer than the and having a depending plunger arranged in the path of the vertical movement of said long arm of the forked member when the cover is being opened by said abutment whereby to break the trolley circuit and bring a p the car to a stop when it has reached the unloading position over the open hatchway,

said abutment being engageable with the short arm of said forked member when the cover is in open position whereby to push the cover toward closed position as the car moves on its return journey, but said arm being below said abutment when the cover is in fully closed position so that the abutment is then free from said arm.

12. In combination with a series of storage bins, each having a hatchway cover mounted to roll up an inclined trackway to open position; a trolley car guided to travel over the bins in the path of the opening movement of said covers; an upstanding forked bracket on each cover, one arm being longer than the other; a movable abutment member on the trolley car an -electric switch carried by said movable abutment and having a depending plunger arranged in the path of the vertical movement of said long arm of the forked member when the cover is being opened by said abutment whereby to break the trolley circuit and bring the car to a stop when it has reached the unloading position over the open hatchway, said abutment being engageable with the short arm of said forked member.

abutment is then free from said arm.

13. In combination with a series of storage bins, each having a hatchway cover mounted to roll up an inclined trackway to open position; a trolley car guided to travel over the bins in the path of the opening movement of said covers; an upstanding bracket on each cover; a movable abutment member on the trolley car; a guiding member for said movable abutment member having a series of notches; a hand lever having a spring plunger adapted to operate said abutment member the unloading position over the open hatch- Way. 7

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto aflixed my signature.

- DANIEL E. STAIR. 

